| French writer, poet, playwright, theater and film actor, artist, screenwriter, director and theater theorist, Date of Birth: 04.09.1896 Country: France |
Antonin Artaud was a French writer, poet, playwright, theater and film actor, artist, screenwriter, director, and theater theorist. Throughout his life, he battled with mental illness, which plagued him from as early as 1915. At the age of 20, he experienced a religious crisis, accompanied by visions and "voices," and began regularly using drugs. In his youth, his poetry showed a clear fascination with Edgar Allan Poe and Charles Baudelaire, and later with Arthur Rimbaud.
In 1920, Artaud arrived in Paris and became involved with André Breton's group. From 1922 onwards, while continuing to write poetry and create art, Artaud dedicated himself primarily to theater. For him, theater became more than just an artistic endeavor; it became a cosmic and universal act, revealing the nature of humanity and God. In 1926, Artaud distanced himself from the surrealists. Initially, he was ousted by Breton, and in 1927, Artaud himself wrote a manifesto against surrealism. In September 1926, Artaud, along with Robert Aron and Roger Vitrac, founded the "Theatre Alfred Jarry," which carried the marks of surrealist ideas. Despite only staging four productions until 1930, the theater's significance was so profound that Peter Brook attempted to model his own theatrical activities after it.
Artaud aimed to break down the barrier between the stage and the audience, transforming the theater into a sacred place where actors and spectators could radically transform their physical and spiritual nature, creating a space for renewal and mystical experience. He found validation for his ideas in the Balinese theater, which participated in the Colonial Exhibition in France in 1931. Here, Artaud witnessed his concept of the "theater of cruelty" embodied, where words were intimately linked to gestures, plasticity, and life itself. During this time, Artaud also delved into the study of magic, exploring the Egyptian Book of the Dead, Kabbalistic teachings, and Tarot divination.
In 1936, Artaud traveled to Mexico, where he lived among the Tarahumara Indians and participated in their ritual ceremonies and solar cults, often involving the use of peyote. In 1937, Artaud published the "New Revelations of Genesis," created with the help of Tarot cards and signed as the "Enlightened One." Around the same time, Artaud decided to travel to Ireland to further acquaint himself with Druidic teachings. For a while, his friends received postcards of a rather peculiar nature, but then he disappeared. It was later discovered that Artaud had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where he spent a total of nine years, moving from one facility to another, until 1946. After his release, Artaud continued to write poetry and even participated in radio broadcasts, but he relied heavily on large doses of narcotics. He passed away in Paris in 1948.